Canadians are well known for our cold, snowy winters, and the for adding the word ‘eh’ at the end of statements and questions. This Ford Model A (or Model Eh) owner appears to be a little more hardy than the average Canadian as his car is out in the snow without even side curtains. The A is unlikely to have a heater either as they were rare accessories. Additionally there is a Canadian twist to how these Model A were put together.

Canadian built Model A have a few minor differences compared to their American counterparts including the use of Robertson screws in the interior. First patented and popularized in Canada by P.L. Robertson, the square socket headed screws are easy to use even with one unsteady hand. Henry Ford had experimented with Robertson screws with the Model T and found they saved a significant amount of time in the assembly process. However Robertson refused to allow his design to be licensed for others to produce which lead the Ford in US to drop the design in favor of a Phillips head screw. As a result the Robertson design did not find widespread acceptance in the United States but proved popular in Canada. Everything inside the Canadian production Model As is held together with square headed Robertson screws.

This colorful Model A likely drives just fine in the snow with its narrow tires and generous ground clearance. Given the lack of comforts and minimal weather protection, the driver might have to be a bit hardier than most. Sounds pretty Canadian to me, eh.

…except Mr. Robertson had good reason to be extremely skittish about relinquishing any control over his patent. He’d licenced the screw design to an English manufacturer, but the party he dealt with deliberately drove the licensee company into bankruptcy then bought the rights from the trustee, thus circumventing the original agreement. Robertson had to spend massively to buy back the rights, and that is why he refused any subsequent licence agreements.

Which is a shame, because the Robertson-drive screw really beats the crap out of just about any other kind.

Yes, Ed, and the main feature in my assertion that in 2029 there will be more drivable 100 year old cars than 50 year old ones. Any old-cars driving event here in SoCal is wall-to-wall Ts and As, especially the latter, and given the robust replacement-parts market the only thing that’ll kill any of them will have to be flood, earthquake or fire.

Old Fords were our mainstay when I was growing up, the last one being a ’36 Fordor trunkless job my sign-painter dad bought from a retiring carpenter for $25. We never had an A, but knew lots of guys who did, and rode in plenty of them. I would very much like to learn the starting drill and actually drive one, though that would almost certainly impel me to get one of my own, possibly endangering Domestic Tranquility …

In the 1950s there was an article in one of the “Popular …” magazines, either Science or Mechanics, quite seriously testing the Model A as a daily urban driver/commuter, and finding it to be not only quite suitable but in some ways a better deal than a new car. Aside from general reliability and ease of maintenance, there was the unbeatable view from the driver’s seat, the fuel and general running economy, and (at the time) low purchase price.

It’s in one of the best protected parts of the car. Contrast that with a fuel tank between the rear axle and bumper that could be found on any given Ford (Chevrolet, Plymouth, etc.) not that far in the future! 🙂

The Robertson screw info is quite interesting. But U.S. Model As used normal screws driven by flat head screwdrivers. As a former A owner, I can attest that if a Phillips head screw is found on a Model A, it is a later addition. From what I understand, the 1936 Cadillac was the first car to use Phillips screws, with most other manuafacturers using them by the 1940s.

You are right about heaters being rare. All of them were aftermarket accessories. My favorite design of the ones I read about was one in which a sheetmetal box was installed around the muffler, capturing warm air radiating from the hot exhaust system and ducting it up into the car. What could go wrong?

I’ll bet the guy with this one parked in the snow is not the guy who actually restored it. Still, those are tough old cars and would make fine winter transport if the driver could stand the wind chill.

Roberston screws are the best! I build furniture for a living, and use only Robertson square-drive screws and they work amazingly well in wood or metal. Of course, in Canada, they are ubiquitous and if you want anything but a Robertson wood screw you have to search for it a bit! The Chinese know nothing of this wonderful screw design and I’ve never seen anything made-in-China use one; it’s always a Phillps head.

A nice car ans yes, they’re very good in the snow .
.
I vividly remember bundling my them 8 year old Son up and driving him up to Mount Wilson in my ’31 ‘A’ Model Coupe….
.
We had loads of fun, never got stuck once .
.
@Will :
.
The starting drill is dead simple ; open the fuel tap, push the left lever up as far as it’ll go (retards the ignition timing), pull the right hand lever down until you feel slight resistance (opens the carby), turn the key or press in the (original,usually long gone) ignition lock until it clicks into place then depress the stater button with your right foot and it should *instantly* spring into life .
.
-Nate

On a cold start, one more thing – pull out on the spring-loaded choke knob under the dash as you step on the starter. Once it starts, release the choke and turn the same knob a bit to the left to richen up the mixture a bit during warmup. I always loved having the ability to adjust the idle mixture and the timing advance from the driver’s seat.

Count me in too as a fan of square head screws. I use screws quite a bit in my work in building/renovating/etc. instead of nails, because my shoulder and elbow don’t really like the impact from a hammer all that much anymore. I buy 3″ galvanized Fastap screws by the large carton, and use them in all kinds of projects. And when I have to take something apart again, they come out easy and can usually be re-used again. fences, sheds, decks, various small projects.

I hate Phillips head screws: they were designed to have the driver pop out when the screw was fully screwed in, but one often wants to drive a screw further than that. Square head bit has zero tendency to pop out no matter the torque, as long as a reasonable amount of pressure is applied.

My grandfather had a 1928 Model A nearly identical to the one in the picture. The only difference is that his was a blue-teal colour. Canadian too. I remember riding on the highway in the rumble seat as a little kid in the late ’70s. Convertibles have nothing on rumble seats.

Its nice that Canadians are learning to speak like Kiwis eh, Unfortunately for us our weather has been imitating Canadas and we got snow in mid summer this year, Model A Fords are still a common sight here it will be a sad day when those and Morris Minors become rare.

As I understand it, the reason behind Robertson refusing to license his screw design to Henry Ford is that Robertson had previously done the same thing with an English company. The owners of the company then, quite underhandedly, forced the company into bankruptcy, nullifying Robertson’s contract, yet they were able to keep making his screw for a fraction of the cost.

It’s a real shame because the Robertson square-head screw does look like a substantially better design than the Phillips head. One of the benefits is a one-handed ability of the screwdriver holding the screw, something simply not possible with a Phillips.

Then there’s that bit about the Phillips having the ‘benefit’ of torquing-out. I guess the idea is after a Phillips head is driven in, the driver automatically slips out after it’s tight, whereas the Robertson driver has to be removed more directly. There might be some merit to that, but it seems like a Phillips head would also be more prone to damage.

Don’t get me started on what passes for a “Robertson” screw these days. I have worked as a furniture maker/cabinet maker for the last 20 plus years. When I first started all the screws were made in Canada and would stay on the end of your drill without falling off. The ones we get now seem to be from Taiwan and don’t have the taper that real Robertson screws have. They call them square drive and aren’t good for more than one use I have found. They also seem to like to break off if you are using a impact driver and are not careful. I have gotten into the habit of saving old Robertson screws if I find them doing repairs on older pieces as they are far superior than the new ones. I did find some of real ones not to long ago at a plumbing supply shop but they were about double the price. When we ship furniture to the United States in wooden containers we make sure to put a Robertson bit in with the shipping information so the guys who are receiving it can get the box open.